Hyderabad, April 1
Law makers in Andhra Pradesh have decided to subject their assets to judicial scrutiny, a move considered unprecedented in the country’s legislative history.

The historic decision came during an acrimonious discussion in the state Assembly over the no-confidence motion moved by the main opposition Telugu Desam party against the Congress government.

The Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhar Reddy will move a resolution in the House tomorrow, urging the high court to spare sitting judges to conduct judicial inquiry covering the assets of all those who served as ministers since 1978 and the 294 members of the present House.

The significance of fixing 1978 as the cut-off year is that both Reddy and his bete noir and TDP chief N. Chandrababu Naidu had started their political career in Congress in that year.

With TDP using the no-trust motion to highlight corruption in the government, the ruling Congress, in a counter-attack, has come up with an offer to get the assets of all legislators scrutinised by the judicial authority.

The demand for a probe into the properties owned by the members of the current assembly came from TDP member V. Narender Reddy while participating in the debate over no-confidence motion.

Responding to the member's demand, housing minister B. Satyanaryana wanted the scope of the probe to be extended to the time when both Rajasekhara Reddy and Chandrababu Naidu started their political career in 1978.

To this, the TDP deputy floor leader T. Devender Goud said his party had no objection to such an inquiry.

Intervening at this stage, the Chief Minister reminded the House that the high court had in the past expressed its inability to spare sitting judges for probes.

Following a suggestion from the opposition members, Reddy said the Assembly could pass a unanimous resolution on the issue and forward it to the high court.

The Assembly will seek a judicial probe into the assets held by members now in comparison to their properties declared at the time of entering politics.

With unfailing regularity, the Assembly has been witnessing a bitter war of words between Chief Minister and the Opposition Leader over assets owned by them and their families.

The spat had often turned ugly with both leaders hurling personal charges and challenging each other for a judicial probe.

Moving a no-trust motion yesterday, Naidu demanded immediate resignation of the four-year-old Rajasekhar Reddy government for indulging in rampant corruption, nepotism, favouritism and misuse of power. 

New Delhi, April 1
Keeping an eye on the coming general elections, the government today extended the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) to all districts of the country and also announced the setting up of an ombudsman at central, state and district levels to monitor the process and grievances.

At the launch of the scheme in 2006, it was decided that then NREGA would be extended to all districts within five years. However, with an eye on the elections and as per wishes of Rahul Gandhi the UPA government decided to extend the scheme to the entire country within three years itself. Incidentally, Rahul Gandhi had recently met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urging him to extend the implementation of the NREGA to all rural areas in the country.

Announcing the extension of the NREGA to remaining 274 districts of the country, union rural development minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh said today that states had been asked to conduct social audit of the scheme. Besides, an independent agency set up outside the government would monitor system failures like corruption and misuse of funds.

The NREGA was enacted with the aim to providing legal guarantee for 100 days of employment in every financial year to adult members of any rural household willing to do unskilled manual work at statutory minimum wage. It commenced on February 2, 2006, in 200 districts and was extended to 130 additional districts from April1 2007. From today onwards, all remaining 274 districts come under the Act.

The minister said in order to strengthen the implementation of the NREGA the government had taken a number of steps and the plan of action for 2008-2009, including transparency in the payment of wages through workers accounts in banks and post offices. The Centre had issued instructions to state governments to coordinate with the Department of Posts and ensure that the accounts of the NREGA workers were opened in banks and post offices for the payment of wages.

As far as performance under the ambitious scheme goes, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand and Karnataka are among the best performing states while states like Bihar and West Bengal are at the other end of the spectrum.

The minister said in the current financial year up to February 2008, 3.10 crore households demanded employment against which work was provided to 3.08 crore households. A total of 121.64 crore man-days were generated out of which the share of SCs was 32.89 (27.04 pc), STs 36.50 (30 pc), women 51.24 (42.13 pc) and others accounted for 52.25 (42.95 pc).

During the year person days of employment provided to a family was 40 days. Rajasthan topped with 72 days, followed by Madhya Pradesh 57.78 days, Tamil Nadu 57.80 days, Andhra Pradesh 39.64 days, Maharashtra 41.55 days and West Bengal 18 days.

The government may be in a self-congratulatory mode on the NREGA but a CSE study done on the eve of the expansion of the scheme to the entire country says the scheme has a huge potential for regenerating village economy, but only if its focus remains on the creation of productive assets.

“The NREGA has a huge potential for regenerating village economy, but only if its focus remains on the creation of productive assets,” says the study.

New Delhi, April 1
Former president of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC), H.S. Sarna, today blamed the Shiromani Akali Dal, led by Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, of encouraging its ally, the BJP, to speak in Sikh affairs.

Talking to The Tribune a day after the Delhi Assembly passed a historic-yet-controversial amendment in the Delhi Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1971, Sarna said the protest of Badal against the amendment was a last ditch effort to take over the DSGMC.

This was the third amendment in the Act in 37 years. The first amendment removed eligibility criteria to become the president of the DSGMC and second allowed holding of elections without paying a fee for the same to the Delhi government.

The amendment, passed in the Delhi assembly yesterday, means that the executive body of the DSGMC will have a tenure of two years and not one year. As a result, DSGMC chief Paramjit Singh Sarna will now continue for one more year at the helm.

H.S Sarna, who is the younger brother of the DSGMC chief, said Badal was trying to wrest control over the committee despite his group led by Avtar Singh Hit being in a minority in the executive body of the committee.

On the other hand, Hitclaimed it was the Sarna brothers who were playing into the hands of the Congress. The amendment was passed as the Congress wanted to seek their help in the forthcoming Assembly elections in Delhi. 

DSGMC to bid for rare armour

The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) today said it was willing to shell out any amount to get back a steel plate armour, which is claimed to be of 10th Sikh Guru Gobind Singh, but only after checking its authenticity.

The armour, in the possession of London’s premier auction house - Sotheby’s - will go under the hammer on April 11, however, its provenance is yet to be established.

The auction house has presented it as a “rare Sikh armour” which measures 29 by 21 cm. — PTI

New Delhi, April 1
Beginning today, railway passengers have availed themselves of concessions in fares for AC first class and AC two tier.

The concessions were announced by railway minister Lalu Prasad in his speech for Railway Budget 2008-09.

An official release issued here today said the concessions would reduce the existing fares of AC first class by approximately 7 per cent during the lean season and by approximately 3.5 per cent during peak season. The reduction in fares for popular trains would be approximately 3.5 per cent for all seasons.

Fares of AC two tier have been reduced by approximately 4 per cent during lean season of travel and by approximately 2 per cent during peak season.

Reduction in fares for popular trains will be approximately 2 per cent for all seasons. The ministry will also grant concessions in high capacity coaches having an augmented passenger carrying capacity of 81 berths in sleeper class, 102 seats in AC chair car and 72 berths in AC three tier. In the trains, having a sleeper class with 81 berths, passengers can avail of 6 per cent discount in all seasons. This fare reduction applies to popular trains as well as those which are not popular.

In AC chair car trains that are not popular but have an augmented capacity of 102 seats, passengers can get 5 per cent reduction in fare during the peak season and 10 per cent during the lean season. Travelling in all seasons on popular trains in the same kind of 102 seat coaches would fetch the passenger 5 per cent concession.

Travel in peak season by an AC three tier coach with 72 berths in a train not categorised as popular, would mean a 5 per cent fare reduction. In lean season, the passenger can avail of 10 per cent reduction in fare, for a journey by the same train. Travelling on a popular train on an AC three tier coach with 72 berths, would mean a 5 per cent reduction in fares in all seasons.

For the purpose of concession, the peak season is between April 1 and July 31 and September 1 and January 31. The lean season is between February 1 and March 31 and August 1 and August 31. The list of popular trains notified by the ministry include all Rajdhani Express trains, all Shatabdi Express trains except Ajmer Shatabdi and Chennai-Banaglore Shatabdi.

New Delhi, April 1
Senior women citizens and people with HIV/AIDS can start availing of concessions announced by railway minister Lalu Prasad Yadav in his Budget speech for 2008-09.

Described as social welfare measures by the railway minister, the concessions came into effect from today. In doing so, the ministry is keeping its minister’s budgetary promise of giving 50 per cent concession to senior women citizens and free monthly season tickets to girl students studying till graduation.

At the same time, the ministry has decided to grant concessions in train fares to people with HIV/AIDS for treatment at nominated ART (Anti Retroviral Therapy) centres.

A press note issued by the ministry here today said concession for senior women citizens (60 years and above) has been increased from 30 per cent to 50 per cent. There is no change in the 30 per cent concession given to men senior citizens. In case of tickets already issued for travel on or after April 1 the refund of difference of fares will not be admissible.

The free monthly season tickets (MSTs) available to girl students studying up to 12th standard has now been extended to girl students studying up to graduation. Similarly, MSTs at present available to boy students studying up to 10th standard have now been extended to boy students studying up to 12th standard. 

Mumbai, April 1
A naval patrol vessel shot at and injured one person after a group of fishermen allegedly tried to climb on board an oil platform belonging to the Oil and Natural Gas Company (ONGC) off Mumbai High on Monday night, a statement put out by the Indian Navy said today.

According to the statement, the incident happened at about 11 pm when a naval patrol on routine duty sighted fishing boats close to an unmanned oil platform in Heera/Neelam oil fields approximately 150 kilometres west of Mumbai. The patrol sighted about 15 fishermen who had unauthorisedly climbed the platform.

"On being investigated/challenged by the Naval patrol personnel, these fishermen jumped into their fishing boats and tried to run away from the platform," the naval statement said. The naval patrol team then fired warning shots at the fishermen in order to prevent them from escaping.

However, after the fishermen did not heed the warning to surrender, naval personnel fired additional rounds at the intruders whereby one fisherman sustained minor injury on his left upper arm, the naval statement said.

One fishing boat was apprehended and escorted to Heera platform and the injured was provided medical assistance by the resident ONGC doctor, according to the navy.

"The injured fisherman was declared out of danger and subsequently air lifted to Mumbai for further treatment this morning," the naval statement said.

The ONGC has now filed an FIR against the fishermen for trespassing in the restricted area.

According to the navy, the ONGC and joint venture exploration companies have reported various incidents of thefts from unmanned platforms, especially at night.

The fishermen who indulge in fishing activity in the close proximity of the platforms pose a safety and security hazard to these vital assets, the navy said.

New Delhi, April 1
Stock brokers Ketan Parekh, Hiten P. Dalal and three public servants are among the eight persons convicted by a CBI special court, which was constituted for the trial of 1992 Securities Scam cases.

They have been convicted for illegally using Canfina’s fund for speculative purposes in the stock market. The Court sentenced them to undergo rigorous imprisonment for terms ranging from a year to six months. The court has awarded one-year sentence to Ketan Parekh, Hiten P.Dalal, Pallav Sheth and Shrenik Jhaveri.

An official release issued here today said Ketan’s uncle Navinchandra Parekh was given a jail term of six months. Two out of the three public servants, M.K. Ashok Kumar, vice-president of Canfina, and B.R. Acharya, general manager of Canara Bank Mutual Fund, were sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment and S. Mohan, assistant vice-president of Canfina, was given six months in jail.

In the course of investigation, the CBI found that Canfina parted with nearly Rs 47 crore in dummy ready forward (R/F) deals in shares and non convertible debentures, between October 10, 1991, and February 11, 1992. It was alleged that the deals were arranged by these brokers. Funds made available by Canfina found their way into the account of CBMF, without Canfina receiving any shares or NCDs from CBMF.

The Canara Bank Mutual Fund then diverted the funds to the brokers. In the forward leg, when the transaction was to be reversed, the brokers returned the funds to Canfina through CBMF. The Canfina officers fraudulently accounted for these transactions in their books as squared off R/F deals. The brokers got financial accommodation of nearly Rs 47 crore from CBMF for a period ranging from 20 to 90 days.

Mumbai, April 1
Decisions are taken impulsively in the era of information technology and this tendency should be checked in sensitive issues like divorce, the Bombay High Court said.

“In the age of IT, tendency to take impulsive decisions is on the rise...but the ability to act faster in a modernised age must not result in instant decisions relating to delicate human relationships...,” a division Bench of Chief Justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice J.P. Deodhar said in a recent judgement.

The high court had to decide on the constitutional validity of Section 13 B of Hindu Marriage Act, which says couples seeking divorce by mutual consent must live separately for one year before they become eligible for it.

A city-based couple had sought consensual divorce within six months of marriage and since Section 13 B requires a window period of one year, they had challenged its validity.

However, the court dismissed the petition saying, “Period of one year is sin qua non...it is meant to be a healing time, to ponder over mutual differences.” Petitioners’ lawyer Uday Warunjikar said the requirement of one year of separation was unreasonable, and it had no relation with the objective behind the scheme of divorce by mutual consent.

But the court said, “If petitioners’ argument is to be accepted, then petitions (seeking divorce) would be filed just a few days after the marriage...There would be no attempt to even fairly understand each other and resolve minor differences which may appear as teething problems of married life.” — PTI

Mumbai, April 1
In a new twist to the Sanjay-Manyata love story, Mehraj Sheikh, first husband of Manyata, said today that she should return his money and his son and then he would allow her to go free.

Advocate Taslim Khan, who is representing Mehraj, said her client informed mediapersons outside the Bandra court that he was ready to leave Manyata, but she should return his money.

Mehraj has alleged that Manyata had withdrawn huge sum of money from their joint accounts in Dubai and London. He said Manyata should also give him the custody of his son, who is at present in Manyata’s custody in Dubai, Khan added.

Mehraj, who is at present in jail in an extortion case, had filed a case against Manyata following her marriage to Sanjay Dutt in Goa, saying that they had violated the Muslim Marriage Act norms, which entails that without a formal divorce, a woman can not remarry. — UNI

Guwahati, April 1
Banned outfit ULFA has warned ONGC and Oil India Limited (OIL) to desist from carrying out seismic exploration of hydrocarbons in the Brahmaputra valley in the interests of safeguarding historic monuments, archaeological sites and environment of the state as a whole.

The ULFA’ warning has given a new twist to the raging controversy shrouding the seismic exploration, which has allegedly caused damage to a number of historical sites and monuments in Upper Assam district of Sivasagar.

In an article in the latest issue of its mouthpiece, “Freedom”, the soft copy of which has been e-mailed to the media here, the ULFA has warned of resistance to the ongoing seismic explorations carried out by the ONGC in the district “putting a number of historic monuments and archaeological sites in peril”.

The ULFA has called upon the ONGC to heed to the public protests by local people in the affected areas and stop the seismic exploration immediately. The outfit has warned of mobilising mass resistance if the ONGC continues with its seismic exploration operations that have “caused damages to age-old monuments from Ahom dynasty in Sivasagar district” besides inflicting damages to private property in many areas.

The outfit has also called upon the OIL to abandon its plans to go for a seismic exploration of the Brahmaputra basin in search of crude oil and natural gas to avoid catastrophic impact on the ecology.

New Delhi, April 1
With the objective of wooing the minorities, particularly Muslims, to its its fold in the next Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, the Minority Morcha of the BJP is holding a three-day working committee meeting in Hyderabad from April 4.

Briefing newspersons, chairman of the morcha Syed Shah Nawaz Hussain said the meeting would deliberate on ways and means to convince the minorities that their future was safe with the BJP.

Sources said the meeting is being held as an image-making exercise for the party’s prime ministerial candidate L.K. Advani, so that the party could attract minorities to its fold.

After the meeting, the morcha is planning to hold minorities’ rallies in all state capitals and the first rally would be held in Kota, Rajasthan.

New Delhi, April 1
The BJP today lashed out at the UPA government for doing “too little, too late” to provide comfort to the common man burdened under rising prices, saying that the Centre has failed to take a “holistic view” of the price situation.

Spokesman for the party Prakash Javadekar said the measures initiated by the UPA were ad hoc and would not create the desired impact on the overall prices front.

Javadekar said while the BJP was consistent in its approach and focused on both demand and supply management, the UPA government had been heavily depending on demand management only, which had resulted in high-level of inflation.

“Yesterday’s half-hearted steps will not give much needed relief to the much-touted ‘aam aadmi’ of the Congress-led UPA alliance”, the spokesman said, adding that the BJP would continue its struggle against inflation with renewed vigour.

“To expose the gross economic management by the Congress-led UPA government, especially on the issue of spiralling prices, the BJP will launch a nationwide agitation from April 7 by organising ‘anti-price rallies’ in all state capitals”, he added.

New Delhi, April 1
The thaw in the ongoing cold war between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party is unlikely to fructify immediately in a grand alliance but neither side is closing the door on a future relationship as both sides have a fight on their hands with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

Although Congress President Sonia Gandhi targetted both the BSP and the SP at a public rally in Kanpur yesterday, her party colleagues participating in the two-day UPCC convention were quick to point out that the Congress no longer regards the Samajwadi Party as its bitter foe as it did till recently.

On the other hand, the BSP is clearly on the Congress hit list as the grand old party has realised that it has far greater potential of eroding its support base as compared to the SP. With several important assembly elections coming up this year, the Congress has a tough task in containing the BSP which is spreading its wings beyond Uttar Pradesh and proving successful in this mission as seen in the Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat assembly polls.

The Congress official position is that it does not favour a pre-poll alliance either with the SP or the BSP and that its primary objective is to strengthen its party organisation and create its own political space.

“Struggle is the only route to building an organisation,” remarked Digvijay Singh, AICC general secretary, and in charge of Uttar Pradesh.

Citing the example of the party’s relations with the Left parties, Digvijay Singh said “if the Congress can fight the Communists in Tripura and West Bengal and work together at the Centre, there is no reason to go in for a pre-poll alliance”. At the same time, he also made it abundantly clear that the Congress has not shut the door completely on any future tie-up.

“We don’t want the BJP to come to power and in order to keep out communal forces we are open to a discussion with all secular parties,” Digvijay Singh added, explaining that except for the BJP and the Shiv Sena, the Congress believes all other parties are secular.

Admitting that the Congress and the Samajwadi Party are warming to each other, Congress leaders said it would not be politically wise to publicise its strategy as there are still several months to go for the next Lok Sabha elections and any advance move could push the BSP and the BJP closer. However, the Congress leaders said there “is growing realisation in both camps that they should not reject each other completely as they might have to do business together after the next Lok Sabha elections”.

It is part of this changing relationship that AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi sent a condolence letter to SP leder Amar Singh on his father’s death and followed it up with a phone call. RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, who has held several meetings with SP president Mulayam Singh Yadav, has also been instrumental in bringing the two parties together.

Lucknow, April 1
A notice issued to film star Amitabh Bachchan for underpaying stamp duty was part of a routine court proceeding and in no way was the state government involved in this as suggested by media reports, clarified an official state government press note this evening.

Reacting sharply to news reports that “were twisting facts to malign the state government”, the note declared that baseless statements in this regard were being made to seek cheap publicity.

“As a matter of fact, the question of the chief minister’s interference in district-level proceedings does not arise. Such petty matters do not come in the knowledge of the senior state-level governance”, stated the release.

Further clarifying its position, it said the state government did not even have any role to play in the Supreme Court judgment that came in earlier confirming the High Court’s verdict of dropping of proceedings against the film star.

Yesterday, the Barabanki district administration had issued a notice to Bachchan for not paying proper stamp duty for the land purchased to open a girls college named after his daughter-in-law Aishwarya Bachchan.

Sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) Sriram Dubey said the super star had purchased two acres of land in Daulatpur village here last year. The star had been booked for paying less stamp duty under Section 42 A-3 of Indian Stamp Duty Act.

New Delhi, April 1
Eleven years after East Champaran resident Kamleshwar Jaiswal was injured in police firing, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) today directed the Bihar government to pay up for the brutality of its police force.

Upholding the petitioner’s right to monetary compensation considering the physical and mental trauma he had to undergo, the commission ordered the state government to make up for his losses by paying Rs 7 lakh. Chief secretary of the state has been directed to submit a compliance report along with the proof of payment within eight weeks.

The order was today passed after the Bihar government failed to reply to NHRC’s repeated notices since December last when Jaiswal submitted his complaint. He was, at that time, breathing with the help of an apparatus fitted in his neck, a fact the commission today recorded in its orders.

As for the petitioner, he can’t help cursing the fateful day of July 17, 1997 when indiscriminate police firing disfigured his face forever. “It was 12 noon and I was passing through the police post near the Motihari city police station when a bullet hit me on the face,” the petitioner said in his complaint. Such was the impact of injury that his jaws were destroyed and his face disfigured.

It took 22 operations in three hospitals to set the damage right. But, right it never was, with doctors saying that Jaiswal will require another 10 surgeries to stabilise. “I was rushed to the Sadar hospital, Motihari, and then to Apollo Burn Hospital in Patna. Finally, I was referred to the CMRI, Calcutta, where I was admitted till September 1, 1998,” the complainant said in his plea to the commission, which viewed with seriousness the extent of damages caused.

In its orders, the commission also relied upon the fact that though an FIR was registered against the erring police personnel, no penal action was taken. “East Champaran SP has said that the investigation of the case ended in an FIR, and no one was brought to justice,” the commission observed, adding that the Bihar government had failed to reply to the show-cause notice issued to it under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993.

“The complainant had to pass through untold suffering in consequence of an act of indiscretion on the part of police personnel. The state must redress the suffering caused to the complainant,” the commission ruled.

Patna, April 1
The Patna police detained Anil Kumar, nephew of railway minister Lalu Prasad, for manhandling the former IMA president last night. The police said Anil Kumar was taken into custody for allegedly trying to abduct noted urologist and former IMA president Dr Ajay Kumar near the zoo under the Sachivalaya police station area here.

The police also seized an Ambassador car from the spot.

Prasad’s nephew had been detained for interrogation as the car seized from the spot was registered in his name, sources said, adding, efforts were on to locate the driver and also ascertain the identities of those who were travelling in the car. — UNI

Guwahati, April 1
The Assam government today informed the state Assembly that it would launch a widespread crackdown on the organised rackets involved in trafficking vulnerable poverty-stricken girls and women from the state.

In reply to a debate on the issues of increasing number of women and girls being lured outside the state by traffickers, Assam Cabinet Minister Rockybul Hussain on behalf of the government said the government had taken a tough stand against the organised crime and instructed all the district police and administration to spare no one whoever its is if found involved in luring girls and women out of the state.

He said the district police chiefs had been instructed to initiate prompt action on any complaint regarding trafficking. Out of 150 cases related to trafficking registered during the period 2001-07, 411 people were arrested while with charge sheets had been filed in 48 cases and investigation is pending in 82 cases, he added.

Legislators cutting across party lines today expressed grave concern over growing incidence of women trafficking from the Northeast including the state of Assam and called for tough action on part of the state government to check the menace.

The issue was brought up for discussion by several women legislators from different political parties including the Deputy Speaker Pranati Phukon (Congress). Taking part in the discussion, many legislators cited poverty in rural areas and lack of education as key reasons behind young girls and women standing exposed to the trap laid by traffickers who have a nationwide network.

The legislators also expressed concern over rising incidents of sexual harassment of girls and women from the Northeast in Delhi and other big cities in the country and called upon the Assam government to move the administrations in those areas seeking protection to girls and women from the N-E living in those areas.

Deputy Speaker Phukan, taking part in the deliberations, highlighted the economic plight and illiteracy of the women-folk as a major reason for exploitation. She added that women were victims of not only trafficking but also domestic violence and though legislations were in place to protect them, illiteracy was a major hindrance.

BRIEFLY

Aussie weds German in Hindu style
MANGALORE: An Australian bridegroom tied the wedding knot with a bride from West Germany according to Hindu tradition at the Sri Kshetra Dharmastala here. The unique wedding ceremony on Sunday was held according to Hindu customs and traditions, with the bridegroom taking the oath by walking seven steps, ‘Sapthapadi’, along with bride, tying the ‘magalsootra’. To perform their marriage as per Hindu traditions, the Australian bridegroom Lans John Brendish (30) and the German bride Karin Gunthar (28) were named as Sridhar and Laxmi. — UNI

French couple creates scene in Varanasi
VARANASI: A french couple allegedly under the influence of drugs created a scene on the banks of the Ganga here, and managed to escape from a hospital, where they were later brought by the police. They stripped naked at Pandey Ghat on the banks of the Ganga when the police came and brought the couple to the hospital. The couple was identified as Michail Rulifer and Marine Nathani. The duo had taken some intoxicant, said medical officer Dr V.K. Sharma. — PTI

Celebrities’ son moves across as ‘red volunteer’
COIMBATORE: Moving away from the glamour of the film industry to the world of Marxian ideology, the 16-year-old son of filmmaker Maniratnam has created a buzz by joining as a red volunteer at the ongoing 19th All-India Congress of CPM here. Nandan Maniratnam, son of Maniratnam and actress Suhasini, is also the proud author of a new pamphlet on Leninism, which is on sale at the venue. — PTI

39 bar girls, 14 pimps held
MUMBAI: The Social Service Branch (SSB) of the city police has arrested 39 bar girls and 14 pimps from a bar at Reay Road in south central Mumbai. The SSB received information that bar girls were being supplied to customers from Sheetal Bar and Restaurant at Darukhana, the police said. At 9.20 pm on Sunday, the SSB sleuths conducted a raid and nabbed 39 bar girls and 14 pimps along with the bar manager and waiters, Mane said. — UNI

Joshi is DG of CRPF
NEW DELHI: V.K. Joshi has been appointed director-general of the Central Reserve Police Force. A 1971 batch officer of the Indian Police Service, Joshi will continue to hold additional charge of the post of director-general, Indo-Tibetan Border Police. — TNS